David Earle (born 17 September 1939) is a Canadian

choreographer Choreography is the art of designing sequences of movements of physical bodies (or their depictions) in which Motion (physics), motion or Visual appearance, form or both are specified. ''Choreography'' may also refer to the design itself. A chor ...

, dancer and artistic director. In 1968 Earle was co-founder and co-artistic director of

Toronto Dance Theatre The Toronto Dance Theatre is a Canadian modern dance company based in Toronto, Ontario. Described by ''The Canadian Encyclopedia'' as "one of the foremost modern-dance companies in Canada", the company tours nationally and internationally and regu ...

alongside Patricia Beatty and Peter Randazzo, where Earle choreographed new

modern dance Modern dance is a broad genre of western concert dance, concert or theatrical dance which includes dance styles such as ballet, folk, ethnic, religious, and social dancing; and primarily arose out of Europe and the United States in the late 19th ...

pieces. In 1996 Earle started his own company called Dancetheatre David Earle where he continues to choreograph new works, to teach, and to create with the next generation of modern dancers. David Earle has received many accolades; a member of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada () is a Canadian state order, national order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the Canadian Centennial, ce ...

, a recipient of the Jean A. Chalmers Award for Distinction in Choreography, also an honorary doctorate degree from Queen’s University in

Kingston, Ontario Kingston is a city in Ontario, Canada, on the northeastern end of Lake Ontario. It is at the beginning of the St. Lawrence River and at the mouth of the Cataraqui River, the south end of the Rideau Canal. Kingston is near the Thousand Islands, ...

Early life and training

David Earle grew up in the suburb of Etobicoke. Earle's dance training began at the age of five with ballet and tap lessons from Toronto teachers Beth Weyms and Fanny Birdsall, debuting at Eaton Auditorium. In 1947, he joined Dorothy Goulding's Toronto Children's Players, where we would act for eleven years. After graduating High School at Etobicoke Collegiate Institute, David Earle studied Radio and Television Arts for two years at Toronto's

Ryerson Polytechnical Institute Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU, or Toronto Met), formerly Ryerson University, is a Public university, public research university located in Toronto, Canada. The university's core campus is situated within the Garden District, Toronto, Gar ...

. At the age of twenty he left Ryerson after a Bolshoi Ballet performance inspired him to dance; he auditioned and was accepted as a scholarship student at Canada's National Ballet School. There he would meet Eurhythmics teacher Donald Himes who introduced him to the Laban technique at, modern dance artist, Yoné Kvietys' studio. David would go on to perform for two years with Kvietys' company. In New York David Earle studied with

Martha Graham Martha Graham (May 11, 1894 – April 1, 1991) was an American modern dancer, teacher and choreographer, whose style, the Graham technique, reshaped the dance world and is still taught in academies worldwide. Graham danced and taught for over s ...

. He was a dancer with the

José Limón José Arcadio Limón (January 12, 1908 – December 2, 1972) was a dancer and choreographer from Mexico and who developed what is now known as 'Limón technique'. In the 1940s, he founded the José Limón Dance Company (now the Limón Dan ...

Dance Company for a single season, then assisted with setting up the

London Contemporary Dance Theatre The London Contemporary Dance Theatre (LCDT) was a contemporary dance company, based at The Place, founded by Robin Howard with Robert Cohan as its Artistic Director. Founded in 1967, and strongly influenced by the ideas of American modern and p ...

in England.

Toronto Dance Theatre

After returning to Toronto Earle co-founded

with Patricia Beatty and Peter Randazzo in 1968. They agreed to share the role of artistic director and each create choreography for the company. Earle became known for emotional theatricality and attractive ensemble pieces. As time passed Earle assumed a more dominant role in the affairs and choreography of the company. Earle joined the founders in 1977 to buy St. Enoch’s Church to convert it to the Winchester Street Theatre. In 1979 Earle created the School of Toronto Dance Theatre, a training program for professional modern dancers. One of Earle’s dances during this time was ''Miserere'', originally part of a larger work called ''Exit, Nightfall'' (1981). The piece incorporates liturgical themes and other religious imagery. Earle and the other founders offered the artistic directorship of the company to Kenny Pearl in 1983. During this time, Earle continued to choreograph in various places across Canada. In 1984 he created ''Sacra Conversazione'' at the Banff School of Fine Arts. The piece touches on themes of mortality and grief and is danced to Mozart’s unfinished

Requiem Mass A Requiem (Latin: ''rest'') or Requiem Mass, also known as Mass for the dead () or Mass of the dead (), is a Mass of the Catholic Church offered for the repose of the souls of the deceased, using a particular form of the Roman Missal. It is u ...

. The piece was later remounted with Toronto Dance Theatre in 1986. In 1987 Earle returned as Toronto Dance Theatre’s sole artistic director. He continued in this role until 1994, where he became artist-in-residence with the company for two years. He was profiled in Moze Mossanen's 1987 documentary film '' Dance for Modern Times'', alongside

Christopher House Christopher House (born May 30, 1955) is a Canadian choreographer, performer and educator. For many years he was the artistic director of Toronto Dance Theatre. Early life and education House was born in St.John's, Newfoundland. He moved to Ott ...

James Kudelka James Kudelka, Order of Canada, OC (born September 10, 1955 at Newmarket, Ontario), is a Canadian choreographer, dancer, and director. He was the artistic director of the National Ballet of Canada from 1996 to 2005, now serving as the National Ball ...

, Ginette Laurin and Danny Grossman.

Dancetheatre David Earle

After leaving Toronto Dance Theatre in 1996 Earle founded a new dance company called Dancetheatre David Earle, in Guelph, Ontario, Canada. His recent work features collaborations with choirs, orchestras and chamber choirs. In 2014 Earle premiered ''Exile'', performed by three dancers. The piece drew upon traditional modern dance and was danced by young artists.

Choreography

David Earle has choreographed more than 130 works over five decades as founder/artistic director of Dancetheatre David Earle and co-founder/co-artistic director of Toronto Dance Theatre.

Accolades

* 2012 - Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal * 2011 - Premier’s Award for Excellence in the Arts, Laureate * 2009 - Premier’s Award for Excellence in the Arts, Individual Category * 2006 - Walter Carsen Prize for excellence in the performing arts * 2005 -

Honorary Doctorate An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or '' ad hon ...

of Laws, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario * 2002 - Jacqueline Lemieux Prize, Canada Council for the Arts * 1998 - Muriel Sherrin Award, Toronto Arts Council Foundation * 1996 - The Order of Canada * 1994 - Jean A. Chalmers Award for Distinction in Choreography. * 1988 - Toronto Arts Award for Performing Arts - Toronto Dance Theatre co-founders David Earle, Patricia Beatty and Peter Randazzo. * 1987 - Clifford E. Lee Award from the Banff Centre for the Arts * 1987 - Dora Mavor Moore Award for best new choreography for ''Sunrise''. * " David Earle's .. work ''Sacra Conversazione'' has been selected by Canadian dance professionals as one of ten Canadian choreographic masterworks of the twentieth century."

References

External links

Dancetheatre David Earle - Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Earle, David 1939 births Modern dance Modern dancers Living people Canadian choreographers Members of the Order of Canada Dancers from Toronto